Tips
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Zero Waste Doggos
Meet our dogs, Scout and Sydney. Sydney is our 14 year old golden and Scout is our 1 year old golden. Aren’t they cute? Now. Dogs sure do produce a lot of waste. They eat a lot. Poop a lot. Destroy things a lot. BUT it is possible to reduce the amount of dog related things that go to the landfill. Here’s what we do for the most commonly used/needed items. Food: Unfortunately, it is very difficult to find bulk dog food — especially for the brand you might want. We do a combination of canned food (which we recycle) and Holistic Select dog food. Holistic Select is part of…
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Common Recycling Questions
Last week, I volunteered with my city at a recycling education table at a local elementary school’s eco fair. I had a ton of fun playing the “sorting game” with lots of youngins (and some of their parents) where participants are asked to sort items in to either a trash or recycling pile. It was interesting to see which items threw people off the most… so here they are. Common — “can I recycle this?” questions answered. Things that threw off parents: Wire hangers. NO. Take these to the dry cleaners! Aluminum foil. Nope. Trash. Styrofoam cups (even with the #6 at the bottom). Very, very few cities actually take…
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Composting with Bokashi
I love composting with bokashi. Okay, rewind. What is bokashi anyways? Bokashi is a way of fermenting food waste (including dairy and meat, which usually isn’t composted in the traditional way) so that when the fermented food waste is thrown in to a compost pile, it breaks down much quicker. Please note, composting with bokashi doesn’t lead to actual compost, but rather, a pre-compost (i.e. fermented food waste) of sorts. I recommend this method if you have a decent amount of dairy or meat scraps and a place to take your bucket of fermented food waste to (like a backyard compost tumbler or biodigester). If this doesn’t apply to you…
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How to Recycle Better
Disclaimer: I am basing this information off of what I learned while touring our local recycling facility. Your facility may be different with different recycling rules and procedures. The best way to find out is by contacting your local facility, going on a tour, or reaching out to your city’s green/recycling/zero waste initiative divisions. Visiting our local recycling facility was one of the most educational opportunities I’ve had in a long time. It was fascinating how high tech the facility was but also how much we don’t know as a community on best recycling practices. So. I’m hoping to share out a few small things I’ve learned. First off, make…
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The “Does This Go in the Trash?” List
I have the below list on our fridge (mainly for my husband) so I don’t have to constantly answer the question: does this go in the trash? Feel free to use it for yourself! Save for compost pile (browns) Newspaper ripped into pieces Hair + pet hair Vacuum and dryer dust Toilet paper rolls ripped into pieces Cotton q-tips Facial tissue?(on the rare occasion it’s used) Paper towels (on the rare occasion it’s used) Parchment paper ripped into pieces (incl. cupcake liners, butter wrappers) Used matches, toothpicks, skewers Bamboo cleaning supplies Biodegradable sponges Dead flowers/plants Pizza boxes ripped into pieces (recycle non-oily top) Paper egg carton ripped into pieces Wine…
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The Mega Guide to Reducing Waste
Everyone has their own journey to reduce waste. It’s not about being perfect but about making small changes over time that ultimately leads to less stuff going out the door. For me, this looks like reducing landfill trash and recyclable plastics (since plastics tend to get downcycled). To do this, I first created a monster spreadsheet (that my husband laughed about but totally got on board with) that analyzed all our trash and recycled items. I organized these items by biodegradable/reusable/package free + aluminum + paper + glass + recyclable plastic + landfill. The ultimate goal for me is to move as many items from the landfill and recyclable plastic…
